(Reuters) - Gun battles between rival gangs in Port-au-Prince have killed dozens in the past two weeks and forced thousands to flee their homes, Haiti's civil protection authority and a U.N. agency said.

Reuters/RALPH TEDY EROL Residents flee their homes after gun-battles between rival gangs in Port au Prince

The Chen Mechan and 400 Mawozo gangs, the latter of which kidnapped a group of U.S. and Canadian missionaries last year, have been waging turf wars since April 24, killing at least 39 people and creating havoc in and around the capital.

Reuters/RALPH TEDY EROL Residents flee their homes after gun-battles between rival gangs in Port au Prince

"At least 23 houses were burned down, and 48 schools, five medical centers and eight markets had to close," the authority and the U.N. Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said in a report sent to Reuters on Thursday.